The risk increases when sending a text as it takes a driver's eyes and hands away from the task of driving long enough to travel the length of a football field, a deadly time of distraction that endangers not only the driver but also the passengers and others on the roadways.

Fourteen states as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands, prohibit drivers from using hand-held cellphones. All are primary enforcement laws whereby an officer can cite a driver for using a hand-held cell phone without any other traffic offense occurring. The first ban on texting and driving was enacted in 2007; now there are 44 states that have implemented the ban. About 23 cities in Texas, including San Antonio, have a texting ban.

Although many in San Antonio don't know it, an ordinance was established in 2010 prohibiting the use of a hand-held mobile device (except for dialing telephone numbers or talking to another person) while operating a vehicle and providing a fine of up to $200 per violation.

Sure, the distracted driver problem is greater than just using mobile communication devices, but the point of pursuing a hands-free ordinance is to make sure drivers operate more safely.

Since the city-wide ban began, there have been more than 1,900 accidents attributed to distracted driving related to hand-held mobile devices. Of that total, six were fatal and 28 incapacitating. The San Antonio Police Department (SAPD) has also issued 7,038 citations to drivers using hand-held mobile devices since 2009.

While the city took a step in the right direction, I believe there is more we can do to improve public safety and reduce the hazard. That is why I have requested that city staff examine the current ordinance related to the ban on hand-held mobile communication devices and add a provision stating that they may be used only in a “hands-free” capacity unless in an emergency situation.

The intent of this amendment is to curb distracted driving as well as to provide police with a better ability to enforce the ban on hand-held mobile communication devices while driving citywide.

As distracted driving has become a deadly epidemic throughout the nation, the council would certainly make the roadways of San Antonio a safer place for everyone with this ban. It would not infringe on anyone's rights, but rather improve public safety.

Remember, driving is not a right; it is a privilege, and we owe it to the other drivers and ourselves to operate a vehicle in the safest manner.